Frame and loading apparatus for groups of battery plates

ABSTRACT

An apparatus for loading battery plate groups into a battery box. The apparatus includes a compression frame which includes a number of relative movable walls and stops for gripping and retaining battery groups. The wall carry guide shins for projecting into respective cells in a battery box and guide the groups into the cells as they are pushed by a pusher. The movable nature of the walls allow the groups to be loaded into frame, when it is in released position. The walls can then be drawn together compressing the groups and retaining them in a compressed state as they are loaded.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This is the 35 USC 371 national stage of International applicationPCT/GB97/01176 filed on May 1, 1997, which designated the United Statesof America.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to apparatus for loading battery plate groupsinto a Battery box and, in particular, but not exclusively to loadinggroups for recombination batteries.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Recombination batteries (i.e. batteries in which the hydrogen and oxygenrecombine to form water) tend to have separators of microporous glassfibre in which the acid electrolyte is fully absorbed. The separatormaterial is extremely delicate and the group has to be loaded into thebattery box in a compressed state (and retained in that state by thebox) in order to ensure that the electrolyte is in active contact withthe places.

It will readily be appreciated that there are significant difficultiesin inserting the compressed group into the battery box cell when thatcell is substantially the same size without damaging the separators.

There are also problems in transferring such groups from the processingjig boxes, because the walls in the jig boxes which apply thecompression can mark the separators if they do not act over the fullseparator surface. Accordingly attempts have been made to load thegroups directly from the jig box by providing guides on the ends of thejig box walls. However, these guides can only extend partially acrossthe width of the battery cell, because space must be allowed for thetransverse supports on which the group elements sit when the jig box isbeing loaded. The result is that the unguided portions of the groupssnag on the box wall.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

From one aspect the invention consists in a frame for use in loadinggroups of battery plates into respective cells in a box, comprising aplurality of spaced walls defining respective group receiving spaces,the walls being moveable away from and towards each other to allowgroups to be inserted in the spaces and subsequently grippingly retainedtherein and compressed by the walls, and guide means mounted at thelower end of the walls to locate in the cells and form a continuoussurface with the walls characterised in that guide means extend acrossthe full width of the walls, cells or groups, and in that the groups maybe loaded from the frame whilst still under compression.

It is particularly preferred that the frame further comprises stop meansfor each space insertable between a respective pair of walls into therespective space to locate the bottom edge of a group when it is placedinto the space.

From another aspect the invention consists in a frame for use in loadinggroups of battery plates into respective cells in a box, comprising aplurality of spaced walls defining respective group receiving spaces,the walls being moveable away from and towards each other to allowgroups to be inserted into the spaces and subsequently grippinglyretained therein by the walls characterised in that it further comprisesremovable stop means for each space insertable between -a respectivepair of walls into the respective space to locate the bottom edge of agroup when it is placed into the space.

Conveniently, in either case, the stop means locates the group againstdownward movement and lateral movement relative to the mid-plane of thegroup. In any of these cases, the stop means should be removable fromthe spaces. Thus, for example, the stop means may provide orthogonalabutments and may be rotatable about an axis adjacent to theintersection of the abutments so that the stop means can be rotated intoand out of the space. The stop means may also be moveable with or inrelation to the walls to maintain their relative location vis-a-vis thewalls.

The distance between the group bottom edge location defined by the stopmeans and the top of its associated walls in preferably greater than thetotal height of the groups. This prevents any part of the group becomingsnagged on the edges of the walls during insertion from the frame.

From yet another aspect the invention consists in battery group loadingapparatus including a frame as defined above and further comprisingmeans for loading groups into respective spaces in the frame to sit onthe respective stop means, means for moving the walls towards each otherto grip the groups between the walls, means for removing the stop meansfrom the spaces, means for engaging a battery box with the guide meansand means for pushing the groups through the guide means into the box.

Preferably the means for moving the walls towards each other aredesigned to exert compressive forces on the groups, in which case thisforce can be maintained during the operation of the pushing means.

The pushing means may act simultaneously on all the groups and may haveheads, each of which may be formed with formations to cooperate with theterminal posts or straps cast on the groups so as to achieve preciselocation between the head and the group.

From another aspect the invention includes apparatus for unloading abattery group from a jig box including support means for engaging thebottom of a group on a support, whilst the group is held in a jig box,means for releasing the groups within the jig box, means for raising thesupport to a level at which a substantial portion of a supported groupwould stand clear of the jig box and means for gripping the raisedgroup. The support may include lateral abutments for preventing sidewaysmovements of the group during raising.

From a further aspect the invention consists in apparatus for unloadinggroups with cast on straps from a jig box and for loading those groupsinto a battery box comprising the apparatus for unloading as definedabove and the battery group loading apparatus as defined above.

From a still further aspect the invention consists in a method ofunloading a battery group from a jig box including engaging the bottomof a group on a support, releasing the grip of the jig box on the group,raising the support and hence the group until a substantial portion ofthe group is clear of the jig box and gripping the raised group.

The advantage of this method and the associated apparatus defined above,is that, in contrast to existing gripping arrangements (where the groupsare gripped through openings in the jig box, whilst the groups are stillin the box) is that both the jig box and the gripping means may beprovided with gripping surfaces which are continuous over the wholeportion which engages the group. This prevents damage and marking of theoutside separators.

Although the invention has been defined above, it is to be understoodthat it includes any inventive combination of the features set out aboveor in the following description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention may be performed in various ways and a specific embodimentwill now be described, by way of example, with the reference to theaccompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a view from above of a recombination battery with its lidremoved;

FIG. 2 is a vertical section through an end cell of FIG. 1 showing thegroup in situ;

FIG. 3 is a part schematic view of an unloading station of a machine forcasting straps on battery groups;

FIG. 4 is a diagrammatic representation of the removal of groups fromthe jig box of the machine of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a diagrammatic representation of a loading configuration andillustrates in descending order a gripper holding groups, a compressionframe and a battery box on a conveyor;

FIG. 6 is a view from above on the compression frame of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a schematic partial side view of part of the frame of FIG. 6;and

FIG. 8 is a edge view of a stuffing tool for pushing the groups from theframe of FIG. 7 into a battery box.

DETAIL BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

As has been mentioned previously recombination batteries require thatthe battery groups of plates and separators are inserted into the cellsof a battery box under compression and that compression is maintained bythe walls of the battery box cells.

FIG. 1 illustrates a battery box 10 have cells 11 in which groups 12have been inserted. The groups 12 comprise interleaved separators 13 andplates 14. The plates 14 have lugs 15 onto which straps 16 or terminalposts 17 have been cast by a machine for casting on such straps.

Whilst such machines can take a number of forms, they now typicallycomprise a rotatable table which can support jig boxes in a series ofcircumferentially spaced locations. Each jig box comprises a number ofspaces or cells into which groups can be loaded at a loading station andthe jig boxes have walls which can be moved towards and away from eachother to group and release the groups. As the table indexed around thegroups pass through stations in which they are aligned, the lugs cleanedand fluxed, and have straps and terminal posts cast on them so that bythe time a jig box arrives at an unloading station it contains, in thecorrect order and alignment, a set of groups 12 ready for loading into abattery box. The Applicants sell examples of such machines under theTrade Marks COS5 and COS8.

Such an unloading station is illustrated in FIG. 3 and is generallyindicated 18. However the unloading station 18 has a number of new andinventive features. A jig box 19 is illustrated at the station and itcan be seen that it defines a plurality of side-by-side spaces 20 inwhich the groups are contained. (The groups are not shown in FIG. 3).When the jig box 19 arrives at the unloading station 18 the groups 12are gripped within the spaces 20. Contrary to traditional jig boxesdesigned for automatic unloading, the walls 21 of the jig box 19 arecontinuous and extend over almost the full area of the engaged faces onthe groups 12. This means that it is not possible to remove the groupsfrom the jig box by the traditional method of passing gripping fingersthrough gaps in the wall to engage the groups. The Applicant hasovercome this problem by providing a series of supports 22 which areinitially raised to the position shown in FIG. 3 at which they engagethe lower most edge of the groups 12, as indicated by the broken line23. (The supports 22 may have upstanding ends (not shown) to restrictlateral movement of the groups 12.)

Once the groups 12 are engaged by the supports 22, the walls 21 can bemoved marginally away from each other to release the groups, whereuponfurther upward movement of the supports 22 allows the groups 12 to bepushed up through the spaces 20 so that they stand substantially proudof the jig box 18 as illustrated at 24 in FIG. 4. In this position thegroups 12 are engaged by plates 25 of gripper heads 26 and they can thenbe raised out of the jig boxes as illustrated at 27 in FIG. 4.

The removed groups 12 can then be transported laterally by the heads 26until they overlie a compression frame, which is generally indicated at28, as can be seen in FIG. 5. The compression frame 28 is more fullyillustrated in FIGS. 6 and 7 and includes two end pieces 29, 30, whichare interconnected, at each side, by pairs of vertically spacedhorizontal rods 31-34. Walls 35 are slidably mounted on the upper rods31-32, whilst stops 36 are rotatably and slidably mounted on the lowerrods 33-34; there being a pair of opposed stops 36 for each group space37 defined between a pair a of adjacent walls 35. The walls 35 and stops36 are interlinked by respective chains 38,39 so that when an end stopand wall combination 40 is pulled away from its adjacent wall, the otherwalls and stops are pulled apart equally to spacing defined by thelengths of the chains. This movement is obtained by cylinder 60, whichcan also move in the opposite direction to compress the walls 35together to spacings defined by spacers 41. These two positionsconstitute the open and closed positions of the frame 28.

As can be seen in FIG. 5 each stop 36 comprises a generally rectangularbody 42, which is slidably and rotatably mounted on a respective rod33,34, and a projecting foot 43 for supporting the bottom of a group 12.The inward ends 44 of the bodies 42 define lateral abutments for thegroups 12 so that they cannot move in a sideways direction. The bodies42 on each side are interlinked as a set by respective rods 45, whichcan be used to rotate the stops 36 from their support position, which isshown in FIG. 5 to a generally vertical position in which theycompletely disengage the groups 12.

Each wall 35 carries one or more guide shims, which are designed toproject into associated cells 11 of the battery box so that they definea guide surface for the groups to be slid along as they move into therespective cells 11. The shims 46 are formed continuously with theirassociated walls 35 so that there are no edges or projections which candamage the groups. Preferably the walls 35 and their shims 46 are formedfrom a single piece of highly polished flexible metal. The height of thewalls from the location defined by the feet 43 is greater than theheight of the groups, so that, once inserted, the groups cannot catch onany part of the wall and the width of the walls is greater than thewidth of the groups.

At the lower end of the frame 28 is mounted a rectangular guide frame47, which receives and locates the frame 28 relative to a battery box 10carried on a conveyor 49. The guide frame 47 has a tapered open mouth 49so that the box 10 is not damaged, when the frame 47 is engaged on itand equally the groups do not snag on the box 10 during insertion.

Returning to FIG. 5, the groups 12 held in the gripping heads 26 areloaded into respective spaces between pair of walls 35, when the wallsare in their “open” position. In this position the stops are arranged asshown in FIG. 5 and so the groups are supported within their respectivespaces by pairs of feet 43 and are laterally located by ends 44. Thewalls 35 are then drawn together by cylinder 60 until they both grip andcompress the groups 12. (Adjustable stops 40 a define the limit ofcompression and may be provided in addition to or instead of stops 41.Their advantage is that they allow easy adjustment for different batterysize. Stops 41 are in any case used for ‘dry’ running the machine.) Theframe 28 is then lowered downwardly onto a battery box 10 which has beenbrought to the correct position by a conveyor 50 and the exact relativeposition between the battery box 10 and the frame 28 is defined by theguide frame 47. At this time the stops 36 can be swung out so that thegroups can then be pushed downwardly, whilst still under compressioninto the cells 11. Because the walls 35 and shims 46 provide acontinuous surface this is achieved simply, swiftly and without damage.

This pushing steps is achieved by a pusher (or stuffer) which isgenerally indicated at 51 in FIG. 8. The pusher comprises a number oflaterally spaced vertically dependent rods 52 each of which carries ahead 53 at its free end. The upper ends of the rods 52 are located on aplate 54, which can be raised and lowered by a cylinder 55. The heads 53are profiled so that they precisely receive the upper surface of thegroup, the exact shape being determined by whether the engaged groupincludes end terminals or simply straps. This profiling not onlyprotects the group, but ensures very precise alignment between the heads53 and the groups 12. Once the heads 53 have been engaged on the tops ofthe groups 12, the cylinder 55 moves the pusher 51 downwards and thegroups are pushed straight into the cells 11.

It will be understood that the whole arrangement of the frame 28 and thepusher 51 enables very precise relative location of the pusher 51, thegroups 12 and the battery box 10 and so the insertion happens extremelysmoothly, despite the very tight fit which is necessary in arecombination battery.

Although the invention has been described very much in the context ofrecombination batteries, the ability to load a series of adjacent cellssimultaneously, is also attractive in the manufacture of other types ofbattery and the general principles outlined in the above specificationmay be equally applicable.

The precise construction shown in the drawings is advantageous, but theinvention incorporates many variations. For example the stops could beslid in and out of the spaces, in which case a pair of stops could beconstituted by a single element. Equally a single stop element might beswung up from one side.

What is claimed is:
 1. A frame for use in loading groups of batteryplates into respective cells in a box, comprising a plurality of spacedwalls having a width and defining respective group receiving spaces, thewalls being moveable away from and towards each other to allow groups tobe inserted in the spaces and subsequently grippingly retained thereinand compressed by the walls, and guide means mounted at a lower end ofthe walls to locate in the cells and form a continuous surface with thewalls, wherein the guide means extend across the full width of thewalls, cells or groups, and the groups may be loaded from the framewhilst still under compression.
 2. A frame as claimed in claim 1 furthercomprising stop means for each space insertable between a respectivepair of walls into the respective space to locate a bottom edge of agroup when the group is placed into the space.
 3. A frame for use inloading battery plates into respective cells in a box, comprising aplurality of spaced walls defining plate group receiving spaces, thewalls being movable away from and towards each other to allow groups tobe inserted into the spaces and subsequently grippingly retained thereinby the walls; and removable stop means for each space insertable betweena respective pair of walls into the respective space to locate a bottomedge of a group when the group is placed into the space.
 4. A frame asclaimed in claim 3 wherein the stop means locate the group againstdownward movement and lateral movement relative to a mid-plane of thegroup.
 5. A frame as claimed in claim 3 wherein the stops means areremovable from the spaces.
 6. A frame as claimed in claim 3 wherein thestop means provide orthogonal abutments and are rotatable about an axisadjacent to an intersection of the abutments.
 7. A frame as claimed inclaim 3 wherein the stops means are moveable with or in relation to thewalls.
 8. A frame as claimed in claim 3 wherein the distance between thegroup bottom edge location defined by the stop means and the top of itsassociated walls is greater than the total height of the groups. 9.Battery group loading apparatus including a frame as claimed in claim 3and further comprising means for loading the groups into respectivespaces in the frame to sit on the respective stop means, means formoving the walls towards each other to grip the groups between thewalls, means for removing the stop means from the spaces, means forengaging a battery box with the guide means and means for pushing thegroups through the guide means into the box.
 10. Apparatus as claimed inclaim 9 wherein the means for moving the walls towards each other arefurther for exerting compressive forces on the groups.
 11. Apparatus asclaimed in claim 9 wherein the pushing means acts simultaneously on allthe groups.